Elder Goh Kee Tai

'It is more blessed to give
than to receive'
(Act 20:35)

In his parting exhortations to the Ephesian elders at Melitus, Paul encouraged them: ‘I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Act 20:35). Paul had witnessed the love, generosity and charity of the first Gentile church at Antioch-Syria in supporting the brethren of the mother church at Jerusalem when a famine was imminent in Judaea. Every believer according to his ability cheerfully donated to the relief fund which Paul and Barnabas personally brought to the church elders in Jerusalem (Act 11:29,30).

Paul and Barnabas were called by the Holy Spirit to spread the gospel to other parts of the Roman Empire, and ordained by the leaders of the sending church at Antioch-Syria (Act 13: 2,3). By the empowerment and guidance of the Holy Spirit, a chain of churches were established in Asia and Europe through Paul’s three missionary journeys.

Paul had fervently brought the gospel of salvation which he ‘wrought with labour and travail night and day’ to both the Jews and Gentiles (2 Th 3:8). Although he had the rightful privilege to receive financial and material support from the churches, he did not insist on it and denied himself of this right (1 Cor 9: 4,6; 1 Th 2:9; 2 Th 3:9). He had no certain dwelling places, and supported himself by working tirelessly with his own hands as a tentmaker when he was at Corinth (Act 18:3; 1 Cor 4:12). He did not accept financial support from the Corinthian church, partly not to provide an opening for his opponents to attack him and his ministry: ‘I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service. And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself ‘ (2 Cor 11: 8,9). God had entrusted him with a heavy responsibility to preach the gospel and he pressed on willingly and cheerfully in this duty to win souls even without a wage (1 Cor 9:18). He did not wish to hinder the gospel of Christ and make himself ‘burdensome’ to the churches in demanding for financial support (1 Th 2:6). The Ephesian elders knew that he had worked hard with his hands for his own material needs as well as for those who accompanied him in his missionary trips, and he had never covet any man’s silver or gold or apparel (Act 20: 33, 34).

Paul lovingly exhorted the churches in the works of charity to support other God’s servants labouring in the harvest fields, especially the poor saints in Jerusalem and Judaea (Rm 15:25-27; Act 24:17;Gal 2:10). He urged the churches not to be weary of well-doing whenever opportunities arose: ‘As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith’ (Gal 6:10). Paul collected funds from the churches at Galatia, Macedonia and Achaia. The church at Macedonia was reputed to be generous despite her own constraints. However, the church at Corinth was hesitant initially, but subsequently agreed to contribute following Paul’s exhortation (2 Cor 9:2).

Support for God’s ministers
Just like the priests serving in the Tabernacle and the Temple were sustained by the people of Israel, God’s ministers should similarly be supported. God Himself gave specific instructions to the people to bring various offerings of grains and animals symbolically set aside as a contribution to the Lord for the use of the priests (Num 18:8-24). ‘Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?’ (1 Cor 9:13).

It is common knowledge that all who labour in any secular business are expected to make a livelihood out of it. Those who planted a vineyard or fed the flock looked forward to the fruits of their labour (1 Cor 9:7,10). If God paid attention to the animal labouring in the field, and directed His people not to ‘muzzle the ox when he treadeth out of the corn’ (Deu 25:4), surely, His ministers who laboured in the word and doctrine are even more worthy of their hire and reward in material support (1 Cor 9:11;1 Tim 5:17,18). The Lord Himself had ‘ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel’ (1 Cor 9:14) ‘for the labourer is worthy of his hire’ (Lk 10:7).

How could those who have received so much spiritual blessings grudge in supporting these ministers with material things? They have transgressed against the Lord in withholding their support. Israel was charged to have ‘robbed’ God for not giving their tithes (Mal 3:8,9). For not bringing their tithes to support the refurnishing of the rebuilt Temple, the Jews who had returned to Jerusalem from their captivity in Babylon were rebuked: ‘You have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes’ (Hag 1:6).

Biblical principles on giving
Works of charity involves much prayers and careful deliberations. The giver is to set aside a portion of his budget for God’s use ‘according as he purposeth in his heart’. It should be in proportion to what ‘God hath prospered him’, and given regularly on each Lord’s day (1 Cor 16:2). All that we have come from God and belong to Him (Ps 50:10,12), for ‘we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain that we can carry nothing out’ (1 Tim 6:7). As children redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, we are merely His stewards entrusted with His money and possessions into our care and we would have to give an account on how we have managed them when He returns (Mt 25:14-30; Rm 14:10,12).The more the Lord has bestowed on us, the more we should share our material responsibilities to those in need (1Tim 6:18).

Giving must be based on true piety. In the giving, the givers should first ‘gave their own selves to the Lord’ (2 Cor 8:5); i.e. solemnly reconsecrate themselves to God, as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto Him (Rm 12:1). Only then would the Lord be pleased to accept the gift and sanctify it to the praise, honour and glory of His holy name.

The offering constitutes a component of the worship of the Lord. It should be given cheerfully, ‘not grudgingly, or of neccessity’. This attitude of giving is pleasing to the Lord ‘for God loveth a cheerful giver’ (2 Cor 9:7). It shows the sincerity of our love for God and the poor saints (2 Cor 8:8). By our giving to support the needy, the recipients may be blessed by God’s grace and love through us. Giving is a privilege and a cause of thanksgiving to the Lord (2 Cor 9:11,12).

Giving is not confined to the rich and in times of prosperity. It can be practised even during periods of adversity and poverty. The Macedonian Christians were liberal in their support for the poor brethren in Judaea. Even though they could ill afford it, as they themselves were in ‘deep poverty’ and ‘in a great trial of affliction’, yet they had abundance of joy and gave as much as they could ‘beyond their power’, trusting in God to provide for them (2 Cor 8:2,3).To be able to give freely, willingly and sacrificially to relieve those in need was considered as a great favour and grace from God (2 Cor 8:1,6). The poor widow in Luke 21:1-4 gave all her two mites to the Lord.

Giving to relieve the needy brethren promotes Christian fellowship (2 Cor 8:4). It draws the givers and the recipients closer together through their intercessory prayers for one another (2 Cor 9:14).

Giving to help meet the needs of one another is of mutual benefit. Those now blessed with abundance may contribute to those who are in need. When the Lord prospers the recipients, they may in turn help the givers who may now be in need (2 Cor 8:14) so that ‘He that hath gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack ‘ (2 Cor 8:15). Paul quoted the example of distribution of manna in the wilderness (Ex16:18). As directed by God in His providence, the people gathered it every morning except the Sabbath, some more, some less, according to their needs and pooled it together so that everyone had an equal share. All had enough.

The abundant grace of Christ is the perfect example regarding giving: ‘For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich’ (2 Cor 8:9). We may not be called to sacrifice our lives for others, but we can give sacrificially of our substance to help those in need. It is God’s profound love that sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ who left heavenly throne to come to this sinful world to redeem us through His atoning death at the Cross. All who come to Him by grace through faith in Him are delivered from the bondage of sin with the blessed assurance of life eternal in heaven as heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ (Rm 8:17). We should therefore be charitable in helping those who are in need as what we may give can never be compared to the condescending love of Christ in reconciling us unto God. Indeed, this is the unspeakable gift from God (2 Cor 9:14).

Blessings of giving
Paul pointed out that what is given to the poor will not be lost, just like the precious seed sown by the sower in the field is not lost as it will eventually spring up and bear fruits. The sower will be rewarded with the increase, not only for a season, but also in the future with enough seeds to sow again. In the giving process, we are actually receiving the yield, not immediately but later on: ‘He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully’ (2 Cor 9:6). Giving freely and cheerfully to the poor does not cause the giver to be poor. God will richly reward and bless him with abundant grace and all sufficiency and increased means to give to every good work (2 Cor 9:8).

God is pleased with this work of righteousness of a generous and cheerful giver: ‘He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness’ ( 2 Cor 9: 9,10).

Management of funds collected
In this particular work of charity to help the poor saints in Judaea, Paul ensured that it was managed with honesty, transparency and impartiality so that he would not be accused of collecting the fund for his personal gain (1 Cor 16:3; 2 Cor 8:20).

For the collection and distribution of relief fund from the Corinthians, it was handled by a team of godly believers with ‘earnest care’, diligence, wisdom, discretion and proper accounting. Paul sent Titus, his fellow-helper and co-labourer, and two other well-known fellow preachers to collect the gifts from the Corinthians ( 2 Cor 8:16,18,22). They acted as trustees of the gifts to be delivered to the receiving churches. To ensure complete propriety in handling this fund, the Corinthians were also advised to send their own representatives with the gifts to the brethren in distress in Judaea (1 Cor 16:3,4). Paul’s visit to Jerusalem at the end of his third missionary journey was accompanied by eight co-labourers bringing money collected from various churches as a gift to the poor brethren in Judaea (Act 20:4; Rm 15:25,26). This careful, honest and transparent administration of church fund is honouring not only in the sight of God, but also of men (2 Cor 8:21).

In the same manner, Ezra distributed the free-will offerings which was collected from the exiled Jews in Babylon for the refurbishment of the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem to 24 trustworthy men. Every item was carefully accounted for and delivered to the chief of the priests and the Levites and chief of the elders of Israel when they arrived in Jerusalem (Ezra 8:24-29).

More teachings on giving
The book of Proverbs provides more instructions on the blessings of giving. The Lord shall prosper His people who honour Him with their substance (Prov 3:9). He promises to bless and prosper those who are compassionate and benevolent in supporting the poor materially (Prov 11:25;14: 21b;22:9). The Lord will recompense a cheerful giver for his kind deeds to the poor: ‘He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse’ (Prov 28:27); ‘He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath giveth will he pay him again’ (Prov 19:17). It is foolish to withhold works of charity: ‘There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty’ (Prov 11:24). When it is within our ability to give to our needy neighbour, we should do it promptly (Prov 3:27,28).

King Solomon urged God’s people to give freely and liberally to those in need (Eccl 11:2). Helping the poor and needy is an investment that will have good returns. We have no valid reasons to hold back what the Lord has blessed us with in the work of charity. The precious seeds cast by the farmer far and wide into the water-logged fields may seem to be lost, but after a season, he shall find them again in a bountiful harvest (Eccl 11:1).Our earthly possessions are vulnerable to uncertain external events which could wipe off all that we have suddenly and unexpectedly and we would have no opportunity to do good to others, especially those of the same household of faith (Eccl 11:2b; Gal 6:10). God is ever so gracious and rich in mercy. He does not withhold anything from us (Eccl 11:3a), but gives us ‘rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness’ (Act 14:17).We should put aside all unfounded concerns and fears over every possible adverse implications of giving, such as hardship to ourselves (Eccl 11:4). We should also have no doubt as to how our God-bestowed blessings will benefit the less fortunate, but that is under God’s jurisdiction and we can rest assured that He works out all things for good in accordance to the pleasure of His will and for His glory (Eccl 11:5). Though we may be ignorant of what work of charity will benefit the recipients, this should not hold us back from further giving (Eccl 11:6). God will certainly bless both the giver and the gift.

A barometer of our spirituality is our attitude towards money: ‘But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowel of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?’ (1 Jn 3:17).We ought ‘not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth’ (1 Jn 3:18).

Our works of charity for the poor and needy will be judged by Jesus Christ Himself: ‘Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me’ (Mt 25:45).

Conclusion
The Bible is replete with examples of the free-will offering of the people to the Lord and also to the poor and needy. For the construction of the Tabernacle, the people brought so much offerings daily to the Lord that Moses had to ask them to stop from further giving (Ex 36:3-7). To raise the fund for the building of the Temple in Jerusalem, King David and the leaders together with the people ‘offered willingly to the LORD’ (1 Chron 29:9). When the first church was established in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, those who had possessions sold them and handed over the fund to the apostles for the support of those in dire financial and material needs resulting in unity and close bonding among the believers (Act 2:44,45).

Our Lord Himself taught us that it is more blessed to give than to receive (Act 20:35) and to be generous and liberal in our giving using the analogy of filling a container with grains to the brim and spilling over: ‘Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again’ (Lk 6:38).

If the Lord so loves us and freely gives us His all, even to laying down His life for us, we ought also to show others His love by giving our substance cheerfully to those who lack basic material necessities of life (1 Jn 3:17). If we profess to love God and to have faith in Him, it should be demonstrated by our works of charity. If we are reluctant to help a brethren in genuine need, our faith in the Lord is dead, for faith not manifested in good works is dead (Jas 2:17). God knows our works of charity and kindness and will recompense us for graciously helping those in need (Mt 25:40). Amen.